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The tips that I created for the Wireless Foundation on smart use of cell phones and other wireless devices in emergencies, http://tinyurl.com/5o68nk , can help save lives and provide invaluable “situational awaress” to authorities during Gustav. Please check them out!

Another link I’d suggest you add would be Qik search for Hurricane Gustav videos —my latest tip is that streaming live video to the web via a Qik-enabled phone (only a relatively-few models, primarily iPhone & Nokia, can do it now) can provide a wealth of information not only to your family and friends, but also to authorities (if they realize they need to monitor Qik, as well as Twitter and the other sources you’ve mentioned — sadly, few are aware of these tools!)

Hurricane Katrina,Rita, now Gustav. Louisiana may be in for another serious hit. But when hearing about the Levy System for N.O. that has been rebuilt, but rebuilt to that of pre-Katrina’s Cat 3 system. What is that about. The A.C.E. “Army Corps of Engineers, knew and know that the previous system was flawed in its construction, but yet they rebuild the levy to its original Cat 3 Standard. Why did they not upgrade the system to withstand stronger storms?

Three years have gone by, and N.O. is still rebuilding, extremely high crime rate is there, the call for the people to come home ,but very few are answering the call, rent is triple, jobs are still scarce. Yes it takes time for a place to be rebuilt, but please, there are other places that have been assisted after having serious problem and have had plenty of assistance from the government, however there a people from N.O. still living in FEMA Trailers.

True, proactive is better than reactive when it comes to Gustav and the “possibility” of it affecting N.O. but what about the Pre-Gustav problems that need to be cleared up? New Orleans is part of our birthright, our country that has been heavily damaged and needs help. I am not saying that the government should just shower money on it to rebuild it, but it does need to take more action and provide those individuals whom have worked hard and maintained the faith to go back to their home and live the life were they truly want to live. And the insurance companies that don’t want to payout, well that is another subject and I cannot say the words that I would like to say.

The Jackson (Miss.) Free Press has a Hurricane Blog, as well as a wiki set up with links and user-generated information about Gustav. During Katrina, we fielded thousands of requests for resources that we shared through our site and e-mail; this year, people can post them directly to the wiki, and we encourage them to take advantage of this resource.

To T. Baldwin: Please be reminded that New Orleans is a city built *below* sea level. It is irrational, at best and to couch it nicely, to think that either the government or the insurance companies should continue to pour money into an area that is going to get swamped again. And again. And, then, again. In all likelihood, it will get swamped regularly thereafter, as well. This will potentially continue for as many centuries into the future as has occurred throughout past centuries. It isn’t even a “calculated risk;” it’s a dead certain, iron-clad, irrefutable fact: during intense rain saturation, holes in the ground will fill with water and that water will remain until the ground has had sufficient time to process all of that water and drain it away.

As far as the high crime rate, consider the majority of the population. An overwhelming number of N.O.’s citizens are happy to live on welfare and other State and Federal handouts and still complain. You may check snopes.com for verification of that. For many, the FEMA trailers were an *upgrade* in their living conditions. Many people did not evacuate ahead of Katrina *because* of the looting potential they knew to be probable. Did you not watch any of the news? Or, like most of our liberalism-poisoned, ostrich-sydromed citizenry, are you willing to forget that part? “Ohhhhh, the poor near drowning people needed those plasma televisions, new furniture, boxes of expensive athletic shoes, and such!”

It is difficult to save someone from drowning when they’ve leapt over the side of the boat holding on to the anchor, T. Baldwin.

Please? Where were the big television and movie stars when the massive flooding of the Mississippi costs the lives and homes of so many earlier this year? Did you hear outcries from that area that the government should save them? That it was the **fault** of the government? Did you hear of high crime rate in that area? Did you hear of racial tension as a result of the floods? Were there fundraisers and drives and media coverage for those average working class farming people? I don’t recall any. I recall many photographs of people, regardless of ethnicity, working together to clean up their own towns and neighborhoods and help one another out. Americans acting like Americans, with honor and concern for their neighbor, and no pointing of fingers and no thought to ethnicity, whatsoever. THOSE are the Americans who should be rewarded ~ not the beggars.

People need to get *over* this New Orleans bologna! All of the money poured into the rebuilding of N.O. could have been used, instead, to relocate the City to an area *above* sea level. With the technology of today, the entire City could have been relocated and reconstructed with streets and buildings indistinguishable from their original layout ~ and it could have been accomplished at a fraction of the cost. What’s more, and potentially better, N.O. would no longer be in a fishbowl!

If you wan’t to do something about the “poor, under assisted people” of New Orleans, by all means, tear yourself up. But stop attempting to burden the rest of the U.S. with your issues of guilt. Let charity begin at home – for each of us.

Was looking at the radar picturesw for hurricane Gustav, and tropical storm Hanna….why am i having flash backs to the movie the…. Perfect Storm….what are the possibilities, just thought I would add a little food for thought and see what some other bloggers might think

I have to say I agree with others that the under sea level portion of NO should never have been rebuilt. If a levee is holding back the ocean in a Hurricane area this is always going to be a bad area. The government should relocate and help these people get jobs in areas above sea level. Instead the government is rushing to an area that should not be occupied by people to begin with. Katrina killed thousands tens of thousands if i remember correctly. I laugh at people who say if you lived in tornado alley you should not rebuild there. I am sorry but a tornado may or may not destroy your house but if a levee that holds back the ocean breaks or is not high enough and the ocean overtakes your area because it is below sea level your house is going to receive damage. I do agree that people in California should not live close to the fault lines but there is a chance you will not receive any damage if a earthquake hits in your area. Again if a hurricane comes ashore in NO the levee’s will not hold and more than likely you will have to rebuild again or die. I think it is a huge mistake to build in an area under sea level right next to the ocean again bad things are sure to happen. Bottom line the government rebuilds NO 3 years ago in an area above sea level and there are less things to worry about this week. Instead more lives will be lost this week and more homes will be destroyed and the government will go in and make the same mistake again and rebuild thinking that they can stop mother nature as always. I say if this hurricane rewrites the map of the South then mother nature wins and we rebuild somewhere else that is above sea level instead of trying to hold back the ocean.

The guy that said this storm was nothing but Katrina was bad in a major news article, better get out and see all the damage, it didn’t hit as hard as Katrina , but I’m sure there will be one that will top it eventually.

The same people that whinned that the government didn’t get them out of NOLA during Katrina in time and they suffered with no food water or bathrooms for days on end are now whining that the food and bathrooms ect. and the trans portation weren’t good enough during Gustav. They now want to go home yesterday!!! Do they not understand that most stores are not open that power is still out over widespread areas and that when the power comes back on refridgerated food will have to be trashed and reordered. These people think that the government should take care of their every need and wipe the noses and butts. Guess what people you are able bodied adults get a job. Help out. Do some work for your community. The government does not owe you a living it does not owe you food stamps or housing. Get some pride and self worth make a difference. When you get back home help a neighbor cleanup storm debris make your neighborhood a beautiful plaace to be even if it is provided by the government take care of it. Have some pride. Be a good stewart of what is given to you. Get an education and be somebody.

If i was in charge of a rebuilding effort or dispursing funds to help people i would tell them straight up. You can build here above sea level and the government will help you. If you rebuild below sea level you do not qualify for government help. Now if your home is not destroyed that is one thing but if you have to rebuild you cannot rebuild below sea level and get help. But if the damage is more than your home is worth the government should not provide funds unless you wish to build new on ground above sea level. The insurance companies should be the same way.

It is a difficult situation in many ways. This is an area that seems to get hit repeatedly and is under a lot of duress. It seems like they are doing a lot of rebuildling when there are no guarantees that it will make a difference (due to the location.) Many families have been displaced and many more are torn about whether or not to come back. I suppose if I had a long-term home in a disaster area, I would want them to rebuild as well, even if it didn’t make sense from a financial/practical standpoint.

Being in the Real Estate related field here in the pacific NW, I hear so much about hurricanes hitting the Southeast and wonder what preventative measures we can do to help stabalize the force and damage caused by hurricanes. I know Hong Kong gets hit by Typhoons all the time, what do they do in these circumstances to prevent damage to personal and property?

Since all of what is seen on the national news regarding Gustav focuses PRIMARILY on New Orleans, I am sending the websites of news stations
in Baton Rouge. It will give you a broader perspective of the damage, impact, and FEMA response. There are videos of the people in some of the parishes that are DESPERATE

“Bob” is having a hard time right now because his disaster plan led to backup offsite servers, files, etc – but the problem is that geographically the redundant backups are still in the same area. Although Ohio has unpredictable weather sometimes, the odds of being affected by Hurricane Ike would have greater in Florida, rather than Ohio! Hurricane Ike demonstrated his wrath throughout Ohio and no matter how disaster redundant a business can be in a city – if the internet goes down citywide, you are down for good.
The supremacy of Hurricane Ike showed that having backup generators does not always solve problems, but geographical positioning is important.